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Thieves Steal Mojave Desert Memorial Cross in Nighttime Heist

digsbe

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FOXNews.com - Thieves Steal Mojave Desert Memorial Cross in Nighttime Heist
The 7-foot-tall metal cross that has stood in California's Mojave Desert for 75 years and withstood a hard-fought battle in the Supreme Court was ripped down and stolen Sunday night, according to state officials.

"This is an outrage, akin to desecrating people's graves," said Kelly Shackelford, president of the Liberty Institute, which represents the caretakers of the Mojave Desert War Memorial. "It's a disgraceful attack on the selfless sacrifice of our veterans. We will not rest until this memorial is re-installed."

The 75-year-old monument was the target of a legal challenge from the ACLU, which charged the cross is a religious symbol that shouldn't be allowed on public land. The U.S. Supreme Court last month refused to order that it be torn down, as the land had already been sold to private owners.

The controversial Mojave Desert Memorial Cross was stolen. The SCOTUS ruled that it was allowed to stay. I hope they apprehend the thieves and punish them severely.
 
FOXNews.com - Thieves Steal Mojave Desert Memorial Cross in Nighttime Heist




The controversial Mojave Desert Memorial Cross was stolen. The SCOTUS ruled that it was allowed to stay. I hope they apprehend the thieves and punish them severely.

If SCOTUS ruled that it was allowed to stay, then people have no right to do this crap. I mean I can understand that argument that it is public land and religious symbols aren't allowed, but there are better ways to argue this case then ripping it away :shock:
 
Sad statement on the condition of this country. No respect for others. May they catch the assxxxxx's.
 
I understand that there are hard feelings on both sides of this issue, but when one side resorts to theft, if politics turns out to be the reason (and we don't know yet), then they have destroyed any argument for their own cause, because they broke the law to make their point. On the other hand, we don't know the reason yet. If the thieves are caught, then we should have our answer.

Bottom line is, if you don't like the law, you work your hardest to change it. You don't steal things - Period. After all, this is the United States of America, not the Anarchist States of America. Our nation lives or dies by the rule of law.

If the thieves are caught, they should receive the maximum sentence the law allows.
 
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If SCOTUS ruled that it was allowed to stay, then people have no right to do this crap. I mean I can understand that argument that it is public land and religious symbols aren't allowed, but there are better ways to argue this case then ripping it away :shock:


And it's not public land anymore so the argument is moot either way.
 
Wait, I thought it was the Tea Party that was the big danger, the ones that would take political activism from protest to action...

How interesting...

However if it's just.. random theft... bad timing.
 
And it's not public land anymore so the argument is moot either way.

Speed read, didn't see the final Sentence with it had been sold to private owners. Ok then that makes any argument against this void.
 
We don't know if these thieves were militant atheists or just teenagers wanting to pull a prank, so we can't say it was a group action until we arrest and find those who have done this guilty in court. It is sickening that this happened. Not only was this theft, but it was also desecration of a war memorial.
 
There's a special place in hell.........

As digsbe said, this is both a religious symbol and a war monument.
 
On the other hand, we don't know the reason yet.
I think we can probably rule out the "I just happened to be wandering the mojave desert with bolt cutters and saw this big seven-foot cross that would look cool in my room" hypothesis.

Whoever did this is very likely someone who sympathisizes strongly with the ACLU's case, or is someone who just hates the people on the other side and wants to get a reaction.
 
Why punish them "severely"? Only a theft was committed. Just because you have some special attachment to a controversial object does not mean that the criminals who stole it are entitled to more time than any other theft would get.
 
Why punish them "severely"? Only a theft was committed. Just because you have some special attachment to a controversial object does not mean that the criminals who stole it are entitled to more time than any other theft would get.

It's not just that. The fact is that the theft was also a desecration of a war memorial and of the graves of veterans. They dishonored veterans while stealing something controversial. I wonder if this could classify as a hate crime if the thieves did it out of irrational militant hatred for Christianity.
 
It's not just that. The fact is that the theft was also a desecration of a war memorial and of the graves of veterans. They dishonored veterans while stealing something controversial. I wonder if this could classify as a hate crime if the thieves did it out of irrational militant hatred for Christianity.

No, theft is theft. You don't get to have a special definition of theft because it offends your sensibilities.
 
Why punish them "severely"? Only a theft was committed.
You can get several years in prison for "only a theft" (and I believe a life sentence in California if you're a repeat offender) - there's a leeway written into the sentencing guidelines, people are simply asking that the person be sentenced on the heavy side of what is permissible.
 
.........people are simply asking that the person be sentenced on the heavy side of what is permissible.

And if you want to be tough on crime, that's fine. However, if that isn't the case, why should THIS crime be punished on the heavy side?
 
No, theft is theft. You don't get to have a special definition of theft because it offends your sensibilities.

Theft is theft, but they have broken more then one law. Not only was it theft but they also desecrated the graves of veterans and a memorial to them as well.
 
Why punish them "severely"? Only a theft was committed. Just because you have some special attachment to a controversial object does not mean that the criminals who stole it are entitled to more time than any other theft would get.
"severly" meaning, the maximum the law will allow.
 
And if you want to be tough on crime, that's fine. However, if that isn't the case, why should THIS crime be punished on the heavy side?
The level of punishment is a function of the value of what was stolen. A "severe" punishment would show that monuments such as this have societal value far greater than their monetary value. A "severe" punishment would dissuade future acts.
 
The level of punishment is a function of the value of what was stolen. A "severe" punishment would show that monuments such as this have societal value far greater than their monetary value. A "severe" punishment would dissuade future acts.

The punishment will be based on monetary value. Just like it should. If they get caught.
 
No, theft is theft. You don't get to have a special definition of theft because it offends your sensibilities.

It also offends my sensitivities. Just plain stealing is disrespectful and the punishment is not nearly severe enough.
Stealing the cross, legal or not, is much more so. In my opinion,its the same as a hate crime.
We must stop on being so soft on crime.
 
Why punish them "severely"? Only a theft was committed. Just because you have some special attachment to a controversial object does not mean that the criminals who stole it are entitled to more time than any other theft would get.

I dont know...wouldnt that make it a 'hate crime'?
 
The punishment will be based on monetary value. Just like it should. If they get caught.
They may not even be better off, what's the monetary value?
 
People are calling for more punishment because this incident was a double whammy, in that it offended the military and Christians, and you don't do that in the United States.
 
People are calling for more punishment because this incident was a double whammy, in that it offended the military and Christians, and you don't do that in the United States.
Not to mention, you don't steal in the US, that's illegal. :doh
 
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